Students were supposed to return to classes Aug. 17 in the Phoenix suburb of San Tan Valley, but the reopening was canceled when more than 100 teachers and staff members staged an unexpected sickout.
Even worse, he said, “to be clear about those ‘arrangements’ for the ones who have to give online public school a try, many of those parents are choosing between their jobs and childcare. They’re literally having to decide which of their two jobs has the better income, health care benefits, schedule flexibility, etc., and leaving the other.”
The father has three school-age children and lives in a prosperous middle-class suburban Virginia neighborhood.
What parents want, Allen said, “is that they be given the resources the system gets, to choose, develop or buy their own education for their kids this year. They’re creating their own learning communities, micro-schools, and applying for charter and private schools in unprecedented numbers.”
The problem, according to Allen, is that too many Republican leaders support school choice only tepidly, thus risking missing a huge political opportunity created by teacher union resistance to reopening schools.
“Other than the president [and] a few senators and governors, Republican policymakers are treating this issue like it’s polite dinner conversation rather than the significant fight for equity that it should be,” Allen said.
Republican and conservative strategists interviewed by The Epoch Times agreed with Allen.
“Trump and the GOP should make dramatic moves that force the media to explain the difference between the two parties on education. The Democrats support the teachers union leadership. Republicans support parents, students, and competent teachers against the demands of the union bosses. That starts with full parental choice.”
If schools don’t open, he said, “some single parents may have to quit their jobs to stay at home because not everybody can work from home. It’s time to lessen the grip of unions.”
“The Republican Party would be increasing the likelihood of winning more seats in the White House this fall if they were more vocal about school choice,” Darling told The Epoch Times, adding that “taxpayers should be empowered on how to direct money for the best education of their own children, not unions.”
The consequences for top GOP candidates not making school choice a vocal campaign priority could be especially severe, according to Club for Growth President David McIntosh, a former Indiana Republican congressman.
“If those Republican senators vote to continue sending tax dollars to state and local government education bureaucrats but nothing to parents whose schools are closed to help them choose other options, polling suggests voter support could drop 25 percent.”